‘I will always be proud of being part of Randhawa’

In December 2018, actor Bhuvan Ponnanna went for a trek in the Himalayas. In 2009, at the start of his film career, he had taken an oath that he would go to the Himalayas when he becomes a hero. “At the end of last year, when the shooting of Randhawa was completed and it entered the post-production stages, I went there and got the blessings of Lord Shiva,” says Bhuvan, for whom it took 10 years to become a hero. 

The actor started off playing a guest role in Just Maath Maathalli and played the antagonist in films like Kool, Manjunatha BA LLB, and Kuchiku Kuchiku. He even hit the small screen with a reality show, before he decided to take a break to pursue a method acting course in Hollywood. “When I came back, I got to participate in Bigg Boss, and then, for almost two years, I didn’t sign any film as nothing interesting came my way. Secondly, I had decided not to get launched with a love story, and that took some more time. Then, Randhawa script came,” says Bhuvan. 

Randhawa was a story written by director Sunil Acharya, which he had titled Punar Janma, Bhuvan tells us. “Sunil S Acharya has no previous experience, except for watching movies. Four years ago, he was writing a novel titled Punarjanma. He had discussed getting the novel published with music director Shashank Seshadri, who is his friend. When Shashank heard the story, he felt it would be better to present the story on screen, and helped him make this film.”

The film, which he thought would take a year, took almost two years to complete and the actor has played three shades in it. “I am Raja Randhawa, photographer Robert — a bird specialist, and Raana,” he says, adding that the journey has been tough and long. “During this time, the biggest challenge was not getting mentally disturbed when you see everyone else around you climbing the ladder, professionally and personally. These last 10 years have only made me better and stronger, and I am proud of a film like Randhawa. It is an extraordinary film, which is technically sound, and be it the background score, visual treatment or performance, it is above par than normal films which we get to watch today,” he says. 

Produced by SR Sanath Kumar, Randhawa has Apoorva Srinivasan playing the female lead. Jahangir and Yamuna Srinidhi are also part of the cast. Cinematography is by Raj Shiva Shankar. The film features a Spotbellied eagle owl, also called Devil’s owl, playing an important role, which was placed through computer graphics. 

Ask Bhuvan if an actor’s career is fulfilled only if he plays a hero, and he replies, “For me, being a hero is like getting a doctorate. Every person wants to do the best in their career, and the best position for me was to be a hero. In this way, I can give something back to society, which will not be possible as an ordinary person. I need money and power, which will help me fulfill my dreams as well as those of others,” says Bhuvan.